Working on a Student visa

Student work can be a rewarding opportunity to make some extra money, meet new people, enhance your career prospects and experience working life in the UK. However, it is important to understand and comply with your Student visa work rights, restrictions and University recommendations.

Work rights and restrictions are a condition of your Student visa

You need to know what you can and cannot do on your Student visa permission.

You must always follow any restrictions and ensure that your work does not affect progress on your programme of study.  

You’ll need to prove your right to work in the UK to an employer before you start working for them. 

If you are a Student visa holder, you should have online eVisa access and will be expected to provide a valid share code to prove your right to work in the UK.

If you have a Student visa, your right to work conditions appear on:

  • your eVisa status (via your UKVI online account and share code)
  • your most recent UKVI visa decision letter (official visa decision email)
  • your visa vignette (initial entry visa sticker in passport)

An employer would need your valid eVisa share code to check:

  • the types of work you’re allowed to do in the UK
  • how long you can work in the UK for

You can also check your right to work details online on the Government website below.

Prove your Right to Work

Disclaimer: This webpage is written for main Student visa holders only. If you are inside the UK on a different type of immigration permission, you may not be able to work, or your work rights will differ from those described here. 

Types of work you can and cannot do in the UK

With a Student visa, you are allowed to do:

  • Paid employment and work, and/or
  • Volunteering, and/or
  • Unpaid employment or ‘voluntary work’ 

Differences between volunteering and voluntary work

‘Volunteering’ offers the opportunity to undertake a wide range of activities. It is not paid, but you can meet new people and make a difference in your local community. There are many ways of finding volunteering opportunities, usually at a charity or public sector organisation. For the activity to count as ‘volunteering’, it must meet certain conditions. The UKVI Student caseworker guidance explains that volunteers do not have a contract and must not be a substitute for an employee. Volunteers would not be paid, though it is possible to receive ‘reasonable’ travel and subsistence expenses. This is usually limited to food, drink or travel expenses only. 

Volunteer Scotland opportunities

'Voluntary work’ has a different meaning from ‘volunteering’. Voluntary work is typically characterised by working for the ‘benefit’ of a charity, voluntary organisation, or related fund-raising or statutory body. It would be classed as unpaid voluntary work/employment, if you get any other type of payment, reward, or benefit in kind. This includes any promise of a contract or paid work in the future. As ‘Voluntary work’ is classed as ‘unpaid employment’, any worked hours must be counted toward your weekly work hour limitation as a Student visa holder (during term time). 


With a Student visa, you can do most kinds of work, but you must not:  

  • take a permanent full-time job 
  • be self-employed   
  • engage in a business activity  
  • be employed as a professional sportsperson or sports coach   
  • be employed as an entertainer   

Although the above list may seem straightforward, there are grey areas. Speak to us if you are unsure.

Further guidance on work that is not allowed

Permanent full-time job: 

'Permanent' means there is no end date in your contract. You can do a permanent part-time job. Outside term time, you can do a full-time fixed-term job.  

There is an exception to this restriction (if criteria met) when switching to a Skilled Worker or Graduate visa. 

Self-employment:

Self-employed workers are not paid through PAYE and do not have the rights and responsibilities of an ‘employee’. Self-employment can include selling goods and services for profit, including online and through apps. The UK tax authority, HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC), can tell you if your proposed work may be self-employment. 

An employer might suggest working for them as a 'contractor' or on a 'freelance' basis. However, that would be self-employment, which is not allowed and a breach of the immigration rules and your visa work conditions. You must not agree to this type of work on a Student visa. 

Employment status guidance: self-employed

Business activity:

You're not allowed to ‘engage in business activity’ on a Student visa. Some examples given by the UKVI Student caseworker guidance which would be considered to be ‘engaging in business activity’ (not an exhaustive list) are: 

  • setting up a business as a sole trader or under a partnership arrangement and that business is either trading or establishing a trading presence  
  • being employed by a company in which they hold shares of 10% or more (including where the shares are held in a trust for them)  
  • working for a company where they also hold a statutory role, such as a director 

Entertainer:

Employment as an entertainer or professional sportsperson, including a sports coach, is not allowed on a Student visa. This includes paid work as an actor, musician, dancer, or other ‘performer’.  

There is an exception for ‘dance, drama and music’ students if it is part of their integral and assessed work placement, where the programme is at degree level or above. 


If your Student visa does not allow work:

  • You must not work if your visa decision email/letter, or eVisa status states ‘No work’. It would be a breach of your immigration conditions and may be classed as a criminal offence.  
  • With a ‘No Work’ condition on your visa, you must not do anything considered unpaid employment or voluntary work in the UK.  

Please ask our team for further advice if your Student visa for the University of Edinburgh was granted with a 'no work' condition. This would usually be a UKVI visa error that needs correcting. 

If you think your Student visa 'no work' condition is a UKVI visa mistake, you must correct this as soon as possible. This must be corrected before you start any permitted work in the UK.   


How many hours can I work as a Student

If your Student visa is for a full-time programme and sponsored by the University of Edinburgh (a Student sponsor with a track record of compliance), your right to work hours are the following: 

Term Time: If you are studying for a qualification below degree level

  • Can work up to 10 hours a week in term-time 

Term Time: If you are studying for a qualification at degree level or above: 

  • Can work up to 20 hours a week in term-time (A 'degree-level' programme is at SCQF level 9 or higher / RQF level 6 or higher).
  • Can work the usual 20 hours a week limit during term-time (would be in addition) during an ‘assessed and integral’ work placement that is part fo your programme. 

Official vacation and after study: Studying below and above degree level: 

  • Can work full-time ‘outside term-time’. This includes official vacation periods, before CAS programme start date and after your programme has ended (‘wrap up period’). 

What counts as a 'week'?

  • A ‘week’ is any seven days starting on a Monday. You are responsible for ensuring that you do not exceed your weekly working hours, so it's essential to maintain detailed records of your actual worked hours. This is especially important if you work irregular hours or if you have more than one employer. It is your responsibility to count the total hours you have actively worked. 

University recommendation:  

The University recommends that if you are a full-time Undergraduate or a Postgraduate Taught Masters student, you should not work more than 15 hours per week. It’s a good idea to reduce your working hours at exam times, if you can, to cut down on stress.

PhD student recommendation

When have you completed your term time studies

Postgraduate Research (e.g. PhD/MScR) students:

Course completion would be after your final Thesis submission, post Viva, and any corrections. 

Your student record must confirm that any submitted corrections have been approved by examiners (Post Viva with final Thesis submission). 

Successful course completion is related to your published award on your student record. This is when the University may report for the Graduate route (if it meets our report criteria). 

Postgraduate Taught students (e.g. Masters): 

This will be the official course end date per your most recently used CAS. This is normally your student record expected end date, but it may vary. Course completion for student work purposes would not be the date you submit your dissertation.  

Taught Undergraduate students: 

This will be the official course end date per your most recently used CAS. 

Repeating studies: If you fail your exams and are repeating any modules or assessments and coursework during your Student visa wrap up period, you will be considered to still be in term-time as you are continuing to study and haven’t completed your studies. You should only work 20 hours per week when studying. 

Employer Right to Work checks: 

An employer's guide to right to work checks also confirms your right to work after you have completed your course. This can be useful to refer to if employers are unsure about your right to work. 

Extra time on Student visa at end of course end date (wrap up period): 

Student visa holders on a programme longer than 12 months would be granted four months extra at the end of the course. This is called your visa 'wrap up' time. This would be the four months from your CAS course end date until your visa expiry date. It may only apply if there have not been any changes to your visa, and you have completed your studies on time. You are allowed to work full-time hours on a temporary basis, outside of term time (during official vacations and after studies) 

Additional Important Guidance

Some students will study on a programme with an 'assessed and integral' work placement.

In this instance, our University (your Student visa sponsor) must:

  • Stay connected with you during your assessed and integral work placement.
  • Inform UKVI that you're doing an assessed work placement as part of your programme.

Whilst you are doing a full-time ‘assessed and integral’ work placement as part of your programme, you are allowed to work your usual term-time student work hours (of up to 20 hours per week) - in addition to the work placement.

Please read our dedicated work placement and internship guidance

However, if you wish to add a new work placement to your original programme may impact your Student visa permission, and you must contact us for up-to-date immigration advice. 

A UK internship or work placement that's not an 'assessed and integral' part of your programme must be part-time during term time to ensure it's within your usual weekly work limit (up to 20 hours per week for degree level). 


An 'early completion' has been reported to UKVI

If you complete your course before your used CAS course end date, we may report this to UKVI. We would only need to report an 'early completion' change and withdraw visa sponsorship if:

  • Your published award on your student record is more than 60 days earlier than your (used) CAS course end date.

Reported an 'early completion' change and withdrawn visa sponsorship: 

  • UKVI will then have to start curtailment action to shorten (cancel) your visa permission to the usual wrap-up period after this new reported early completion date. UKVI will issue a curtailment notice by email that confirms your new curtailed (shortened) visa expiry date. The original visa expiry date will no longer be relevant in this case.
  • If you don't leave the UK after an early completion has been reported to UKVI, you may work full-time inside the UK on your Student visa. However, you must leave the UK before your new shortened (curtailed) cancellation visa expiry date. You must not overstay your visa beyond the new curtailed expiry date. 

If we have not reported an 'early completion'

In limited cases, an early completion may not need to be reported if this happened when you were already in the wrap-up period of your visa permission. 

If you complete your course before the course end date on your CAS and we have not needed to report this change to UKVI, you should wait until after your course end date has passed, before you start working more than your term-time hours. 


Proving your right to work to an employer: Overview

If you want to work above your weekly limit, the employer may need to provide evidence that you are not in 'term-time', before they can give full-time or extra hours.  

The official term dates and vacation periods are published on the University semester dates website. 

University Academic Dates

The University will not issue a letter confirming that you can work full-time on a Student visa. This is not a document that we can issue.   

Your eVisa share code will confirm your right to work information, and you can provide the following additional documents: 

  • Semester Dates showing term-time and official vacation dates.  
  • Student Matriculation Letter 

Official University Documents

Keep your online UKVI account up-to-date

If you need help with your online eVisa account

Employer guidance:

If you are waiting on a valid in-time pending visa extension/application inside the UK, the eVisa share code may not work.  In this instance, the employer can check your right to work using the 'Employer Checking Service' instead.  

An employer can also phone the 'UKVI Employer Enquiry' helpline for further guidance. 

Employer Checking Service

Employer Guidance: Checking a job applicant's right to work

UK Employer checklist for employing someone new

UK Employment contracts: Overview


If you finish your studies and still have time left on your Student visa permission, you may be able to work full-time on a temporary basis (e.g. a fixed-term contract). You can usually work full-time after studies until your valid Student visa expiry date (as you'll no longer be in your term time).   

If you want to stay longer in the UK, you will need to check if there is another visa type that you can qualify for. You can make a valid in time visa application inside the UK if you meet all visa requirements and submit your visa application, before/by your Student visa expiry date.  

There are many different work visas for the UK, including the graduate visa, skilled worker, and global talent route.  

The Graduate visa is flexible and unsponsored, and can search for and start nearly all types of work in the UK. With a Graduate visa, you can also travel in and out of the UK during the validity of your visa without any restriction. However, the Graduate visa category does not offer the option to settle in the UK.  

Other work visa options, such as the Skilled Worker or Global Talent visa, can lead to settlement in the UK.   

Careers Service support

The Careers Service can provide graduates and alumni with 2 years of University career support. The service has lots of useful information and resources to help you navigate the UK graduate job market. 

Undergraduate

Postgraduate Taught

Postgraduate Research

Further online visa guidance

Our student work visa guidance

UKCISA student visa guidance

UK Government information


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